thyssenkrupp Shares Fall 12% on TK Axialis’ Frankfurt Listing Day
Key Facts
thyssenkrupp shares fell about 12% on October 28, the day its TK Axialis unit began trading on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange’s Prime Standard, according to a Reuters report published via Euronext. The report did not attribute the decline to a specific cause, so it does not establish that the listing or the unit’s separation drove the share move. Trading followed approval of the prospectus by Germany’s financial regulator, while the company had set October 28 as the date for the initial listing. The spin-off distributed 49% of TK Axialis shares to thyssenkrupp shareholders, while the group retained a 51% stake. Shareholders thus received a direct stake in the unit, while the parent remained its largest shareholder and its largest strategic shareholder.
thyssenkrupp shareholders approved the spin-off plan at an extraordinary meeting held on August 7, 2026, paving the way for an independent listed company focused on materials distribution and supply-chain services. Chief Executive Miguel López said the listing “allows our shareholders to participate directly in TK Axialis’ development.” The arrangement reflects the distribution of ownership between the group’s shareholders and the parent company, with thyssenkrupp retaining a majority after transferring 49% of the shares to its shareholders. Supervisory Board Chairman Siegfried Russwurm said the aim of the transformation was to create strong, independent companies operating under thyssenkrupp as a financial holding company. The structure places the unit on the market as a listed entity while keeping it linked to a majority owner.
TK Axialis trades in materials, buying, selling and processing materials such as steel and alloys, as well as managing their storage, according to Reuters. The unit has about 15,500 employees, or roughly 17% of thyssenkrupp’s total workforce. Its sales reached 11.4 billion euros in fiscal 2024/2025, equivalent to about one-third of the group’s sales. This scale gives the unit a substantial operating base within the parent group, even though thyssenkrupp retained most of its shares after the spin-off. Its stated medium-term target is an adjusted core profit margin of between 4% and 5%, compared with a 2% margin in fiscal 2024/2025.
TK Axialis has identified the U.S. market as a key expansion target, as the materials trade undergoes restructuring. Reuters noted that Germany’s smaller Klöckner is being acquired by U.S.-based Worthington Steel, while U.S. companies Ryerson and Olympic Steel are merging. These deals place the unit’s business in a sector being reshaped by German and U.S. companies, as it seeks to lift its adjusted core margin from 2% to a range of 4%–5% over the medium term. The listing had been scheduled for October 28 after the prospectus was approved, and trading began on that date, according to the Reuters report. thyssenkrupp shares fell about 12% that day, but the report did not identify a reason for the decline.